Follow INTL FCStone Employee's Mount Everest Trek

Michael Ortiz is the Head Trader at INTL FCStone's commodities OTC trading division, INTL Hanley, LLC. He wil be climbing Mount Everest during the month of April.

Mike will be carrying the INTL FCStone banner high up the mountain. As a company, we are proud to put one of our officers on Everest.

A climb on Everest, being the highest point on earth, and sometimes called the “Third Pole,” represents the commitment, perseverance and dedication that our firm has to its clients and the business of risk management.

Mike feels that there are many parallels between high altitude mountaineering and commodity risk management. Both stress extreme precision, rapid decision-making, an attention to detail and most important, critical thought processes in handling objective risk.

We invite our customers and our colleagues to follow the expedition’s progress. Please follow Mike below,or directly at the link www.aspeneverest.com.

About Mike

Mike Ortiz came to INTL FCStone last year when the company acquired Hanley Group. Hanley Group was founded in 1984 by George Hanley and is a large worldwide trader of agricultural options.

Mike built out Hanley’s OTC trading capabilities which was a perfect fit with FC Stone Trading. As Head Trader, Mike diligently manages the firm’s largest OTC option positions, coaches and mentors the large trading group, manages new product and business development and is a member of the parent firm’s EXECO committee.

Mike came to INTL FC Stone with over thirty years industry experience. Having been a CBOT floor trader and working for major institutions such as Merrill Lynch, Morgan Stanley, Cargill, Refco and the Australian Wheat Board, he was a pioneer in commodity option trading and one of the founders of the current agricultural OTC market.

George Hanley and Mike Ortiz at Mt. Sopris, Colorado

About the Expedition

Mike will join the international team of Russell Brice (a company that has led climbs to Everest for 18 years.) The Discovery Channel featured Russ’s company for three seasons. Everest: Season Three features the route Mike is taking and is available on Amazon: Video on Demand.

Mike has climbed extensively in Colorado, Alaska, Canada, Africa and Europe. Aside from the other climbers on Russ's Himex Team, Mike's fiancé Bobbi Cunningham will join the group on the trek to base camp. Bobbi is a vet tech student at Colorado Mountain College. Bobbi after many years with Goldman Sachs and other Wall Street firms has decided to follow her passion for the care of small animals. She will be joining Lance Fox's Healthy Yak team. Lance is a well respected vet in Wisconsin and climbed Everest with Himex in 2009. He is returning to help the people of the Khumbu. The team of four vets and Bobbi will travel though ten villages de-worming over 2,000 yaks which will greatly increase their health resulting in a stronger animals and increased milk production. Taylor Ortiz, Mike's daughter is joining the team from St Andrews University.

In 2003 Mike's "Cargill Climbs for Kids" Alaska Range Expedition raised money for the Betty Ford Center Children's Program. The Program treats kids between the ages of seven and twelve who live with chemically dependent parents. The Program has been a huge success and he hopes to bring awareness to the effort.